The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1887-07-07
SPIRITUAL ARCHERY.
The omnipotent Arrow of The Gospel.

DeCOme
Hunters Before the Lord"
BROOKLYN, June 26.-Many Of the fam
lilies belonging 10 the church of which the
Rev. T. De Witt Tulmage, D. D., is pastor,
have gone to the country for the summer,
but still the great throngs of people that
for eighteen years have been seen in and
around Brooklyn Tabernacle on Sabbath
days, are found there. 1t is estimated
that about 100000 strangers have visited
this church during the past year. The
hymn sung this morning was:
Salvation, Oh the joyful soundl
lis pleasure to our ears
sovereign balm for every wound,
A cordial for our fears.
DR.. Talmage's text was: "He was a
mighty hunter before the Lord. "-Genesis
K. 8. He said:
In our day hunting is sport; but in the
lands and times infested with wild beasts il
was matter of life or death with the peo-
pie. 1t was very different from going out
on sunshiny afternoon with patent
breech loader TO shoot red birds on the
flats, when Pollus and Achilles and
Diomedes went out to clear the land of
lions and tigers and bears. My text sets
forth Nimrod as q hero when it presents
him with broad shoulders and shaggy
apparel and sunbrowned face, and arm
punched with muscle-"a mighty hunter
before the Lord" think Ire used the bow
and the arrow, with great success practicing
archery.
have thought if it is such a brave thing
to clear wild beasts out of a country, if it is
not better and braver thing to hunt down
and destroy those great evils of society
that are stalking the land with fierce eye
and bloody paw and sharp tusk and quick
spring. | have wondered if there is not
such thing as gospel hunting, by which
those who have been flying from the truth
may be captured for God and Heaven. The
Lord Jesus in His sermon used the art of
angling for an illustration when He said: II
will make you fishers of men," And SO l
think have authority for using hunting as
an illustration of gospel truth; and l pray
God that there may be many a man in this
congregation who shall begin to study
gospel archery, of whom it may after a
while be said: HE was q mighty hunter
before the Lord"
How much awkward Christian work
there is done in the world How many
good people there are who drive souls
away from Christ instead of bringing them
to him! Religious blunderers, who upset
more than they right Their gun has q
crooked barrel, and kicks as it goes off.
They are like q clumsy hunter who goes
along with skilful hunters; at the very mo-
ment he ought to be most quiet he is crack
ing an alder or falling over log and
frightening away the game. How few
Christian people have ever learned the
lesson of which l read at the beginning of
the service, how that the Lord Jesus Christ
at the well went from talking about a cup
OF water to the most practical raligious
truths, which won the womans soul for
God. Jesus, in the wilderness, was break
ing bread to the people. | think it was
good bread; it was very light bread, and
the yeast had done its work thoroughly.
Christ, after he had broken the bread, said
to the people: Beware Of the yeast, or of
the leaven, of the Pharisees!" So natural
transition it was, and how easily they all
understood him. But how few Christian
people who understand how to fasten the
truths of God and religion to the souls of
men! Truman Osborne, one of the evangel-
lists who went through this country some
years ago, had wonderful art in the right
direction. He came to my fathers home
one day, and while we were all seated in
the room, he said: "Mr. Talmage, are all
your children Christians2" Father said:
"Yes, all but De Witt" Then Truman
Osborne looked down into the fireplace,
and began to tell q story of storm that
came on the mountains, and the sheep were
in the fold; but there was one lamb outside
that perished in the storm. Had ho looked
me in the eye, should have been angered
when he told me that story; but he looked
into the fireplace, and it was so pathetically
and beautifully done that Inever found any
peace until l was sure l was inside the
fold, where the other sheep are.
The archers of old times studied their
art. They were very precise in the matter.
The old books gave especial directions as
10 how the archer should go, and as to
what an archer should do. He must stand
erect and firm. his left foot little in adj
vance of his right foot. With his left hand
lie must take hold of the bow in the middle,
and then with the three fingers and the
thumb of his right hand he should lay
hold of the arrow and ahiX it 10 the string
so precise was the direction given. But
how clumsy we are about religious work!
How little skill and care we exercise! How
often our arrows miss the mark! Oh,
that we might learn the art of doing good
and become "mighty hunters before the
Lord"
In the first place, if you want to be eff
fectual in doing good, you must be very
sure of your weapon, There was some
thing very fascinating about the archery
of olden times. Perhaps you do not know
what they could do with the bow and ar
row. Why, the chief battles fought by the
English Plnntagenets were with the long
bow. They would take the arrow of
polished wood and feather it with the
plane of bird, and then it would fly
from the bowstring of plated silk. The
broad fe'ds of Agincourt md Solway Moss
ard Eeville's Cross heard the loud thrum
of the archers bowstring. Now, my Chris
tian friends, we have q mightier weapon
than that. 1t is the arrow of the Gospel;
it is a sharp arrow; it is straight arrow;
II is feathered from the wing of the dove
of Gods spirit; it flies from a bow made
out Of the wood of the cross. AS far as l
can estimate or calculate, it has brought
down 400, 100000 souls. Paul knew how
to bring the notch of that arrow on to that
bowstring, and its whir was heard through
the Corinthian theaters, and through the
court room, until the knees Of Felix
knocked together. 1t was that arrow that
stuck in Luther's heart when he cried
out: "Oh, my sins! Oh, my sinsl" If
It strike man in the head, it kills his
If it strike him in the heel, it
will turn his step; if 1t strike him in the
heart, he throws up his hands, as did one
Of old when wounded in the battle, cry
ing: "Oh, Galilean, ttou hast con-
luered."
In the armory of the Earl Of Pembroke
here are old corslets which show that the
arrow of the English used to go through
The breastplate, through the body of the
warrior, and out through the backplate.
What symbol of that Gospel which is
sharper than two-edged sword, piercing
70 the dividing asunder of soul and body,
md of the joints and marowl Would to
God we had more faith in that Gospel
The humblest man in this house, if he had
enough faith in him, could bring 100 souls
o Jesus-perhaps 500. Just in proportion
,o tl,;, - ,ao,,e 10 ha1;oya Ior, -. 4 Ioa,